USA Pro Cycling Challenge: Full Boulder route released

Downtown businesses gearing up for big crowds this August

Riders competing in this year's USA Pro Cycling Challenge will crank up Boulder Canyon, pedal across the Peak to Peak Highway, fly down South St. Vrain Canyon and wind -- not once but twice -- through downtown Boulder before hammering up the brutally steep Flagstaff Mountain to the finish line.

A map of the full race route was officially released Wednesday by race organizers, and it confirms the general geography that was laid out to the Boulder City Council in late February, and adds new details.

Riders will pass through Boulder on Aug. 25 during the sixth stage of the seven-stage race.

This is the route map of Stage 6 of Pro Cycling Challenge, which begins in Golden and ends in Boulder, Colo. (USA Pro Cycling Challenge)

Bike racing enthusiasts throughout Boulder County cheered the general route description revealed in February, calling the planned finish atop Flagstaff Mountain "a dream come true" and comparing the uphill ride to the Alpe d'Huez, the famous climb from the Tour de France.

On Wednesday, business owners along the route got their first chance to see where crowds likely will gather -- and where streets will be closed -- along the route.

"We're enthusiastic that they're going right by our place," said Frank Overton, owner of the FasCat Coaching on North Broadway.

"We're going to have a block party and go nuts for it; we'll have the race live on the big screen," said Overton, whose company trains cyclists to improve their performance. "It'll be a big celebration for our company. It's a major deal for companies like mine that the race is not only in Colorado but coming to Boulder and riding right by. Hopefully we'll get some exposure out of it."

Flagstaff Mountain will be closed for the race starting that Friday night -- though residents and patrons of the Flagstaff House will be allowed to pass through -- but most of the other closures will be rolling closures that temporarily block traffic to let the riders cruise through instead of closing an area for the duration of the race.

Those closures will impact Boulder twice: first when the riders come into town from Golden via Colo. 93 and make a pass through the center of town before heading up Boulder Canyon, and again when the riders cruise back from Lyons and head towards Flagstaff Mountain via Broadway and a loop through downtown.

Andrew Shoemaker, co-chairman of the local organizing committee, said the first rolling closures through town likely will be shorter than the second round.

"When it comes through the first time, they will have just come from Golden to Boulder and the peloton will all be together -- we're talking about a pack of hundred or so riders surrounded by the entourage of cars above and beyond," he said. "... On the way back, it will be more spread out. That's actually the hope. You beat these guys up a bit."

But even the second time, the road closures could be intermittent, allowing some cross traffic between riders if, for example, the cyclists have split into two distinct groups: a breakaway pod and the main peloton.

Shoemaker said that, in the downtown area, race organizers also will likely put up some barriers to make sure crowds don't spill out onto the roads.

Bump in business

Larry Domnitz, founder of Breadworks on Broadway, said he's not sure what to expect with the cycling race, but based on his experience with the Bolder Boulder -- which comes right past the back of his store -- he expects to get a bump in business.

"People can't drive because the streets are closed for the Boulder Bolder, but the streets are lined with people -- it's once a year and it's a big event and it's fun," he said. "We're kind of busy during the event because a lot of people are hanging around and they come in for a snack or something cold to drink."

Domnitz said that because Saturdays in the summer are typically slower than weekdays, the cycling event might bring in more customers than normal.

"If anything, it may be a little helpful," he said, "if there's a lot of people milling around."

Based on the turnout along the race course in other parts of the state last year, Shawn Hunter, co-chairman and CEO of the race, said he expects that Boulder will see plenty of people lined up along the roads. Hunter said the big crowds last year got the riders even more excited.

"At the end of the day, they're like any other athlete," he said. "They like to perform in front of crowds."

And Hunter said businesses on last year's race course also reported that the event was good for their bottom lines.

"I've not gotten any negative feedback," he said. "It's always met with excitement and support."

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